ABSTRACT
The setting for Leonid Brezhnev's entry onto the scene needs to be put in the perspective of the Nikita Khrushchev exit. Internationally and domestically, Brezhnev instituted damage control to repair the faults of Khrushchev's rule. More modestly, Brezhnev scaled down that boast, stating that what had been achieved was "developed socialism." At no other period in Soviet history did the citizen's material welfare improve as much as it did during the last half of Khrushchev's rule and the first half of the Brezhnev era. Certainly, Brezhnev's years at the helm did not encompass anything like the dramatic events that occurred during Khrushchev's time in office. No serious challenge to Brezhnev's leadership surfaced midway during his term. Basic to Soviet economic growth is resolving the agricultural problem. Evidence for the seriousness of that problem can be found than in one of the last acts of the Brezhnev Politburo.
